Everyone has a story
by ADAMalchemist
Summary: "Hey Roy...when you walk by people, do you wonder what their life is like? Or who they are?" Story might be better then the summary. EdXRoy later on maybe. Changed to M rating due to later chapters.
1. Start Of It All

**A/N: I have many stories stuck in my head. But yeah, I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist although I wish I did. And, more then likely, my writing will suck with this story as well. **

**But yeah, anyway, Enjoy.**

* * *

Summer is meant for fun. For a child, it meant amusement parks, ice cream, and cherry soda pop. For adults it meant barbeques, fireworks, a chance for love, and chasing the little ones around the yard trying to put their bathing suit back on. But sadly, this was not one of those free, fun packed summers.

At least, not for two little boys.

The window was cracked only slightly as to let in the cool air of the night in, which caused the curtains to dance against the light of a lamp that sat nearby. It did not shine white like most lamps, it shined a brilliant yellow. And the young one on the floor began to wonder if the reason for his gold eyes was because I always stared at this one lamp. Just as he was doing right now. He couldn't take his eyes off it for it gave of a sense of bliss and enjoyment. Even the toy in his hands wouldn't ever make him as happy as the light. His little brother on the other hand did not find this same bliss and took the toy from the older one and began to play silently.

The golden eyed one stayed staring even though, in the background, his mother was franticly packing bags and gathering money. As she did this, she would stop every once and a while to listen for a noise. The young boys didn't know what, but they knew that they had to be quiet as well. They knew by the look on their mother's face and the vibe they got from her that something scary was happening.

"Alright boys…I'm almost done…then we'll never be bothered again." She said, putting all of the bags in the living room with her two sons.

The youngest glanced at the bags then up at his mother as she began to put his shoes on. "Momma…" He cooed but she quickly shushed him.

"Alphonse, dear, you need to be quiet…" She said in a hush tone and looked at the window as headlights shined in. And just like that, the oldest son's concentration was broken and his huge golden eyes looked out the window. Something seemed to grab his heart and yank violently as he heard a car door slam outside. He jumped and looked at his mother and was about to ask what was going on when she suddenly put them in his bedroom.

"B-brother…I-I'm scared…" Alphonse whimpered as he clung to his older brother who was staring out into the living room to see what was going on.

Their father walked into the house and he felt every piece of him freeze. He had a bad feeling about what was about to happen.

"What are you doing?" His father asked with much of a slur. His mother shook her head, her auburn brown hair swaying back and forth.

"N-nothing dear…I was just-"

"Just what?! Are…are you leaving me, Trisha?"

The oldest son could see something pop in his mother. A sort of bottle that held many emotions. "I can't do this anymore, Van! I won't let you touch my children!"

"They are my children, too! And I will do whatever I want with them!"

The eldest son shut the door and held his younger brother close as they listened to heavy, masculine fists hit violently against delicate silk skin. And as the screams and braking vases cooled down to simple cries, he began to fall asleep with his brother who was already gone into his own wonderland. He smiled at the thought of a wonderland as his eyes closed and imagined a white rabbit in a waist coat falling into his own hole. And in his mind, he ran after it.

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**A/N: Is it any good? Should I continue? o.o**


	2. The New Student

**A/N: My creative juices aren't as good as the other day, so I'm sorry. Warning for crappy writing and offensive language. **

* * *

One of the best feelings is waking up after sleeping in for so long. Especially on week days. On week days, you wake up at six am, remember you don't have school that day, and fall right back asleep, returning to your own world.

But for some, sleeping in didn't have the same feeling after waking up. For two certain boys, it meant punishment.

The sun began to rise and shine in one young boy's face. He squinted his eyes and grumbled at the sun, telling it to give him more time. But he opened his eyes anyway and looked up at it with slight joy. At least the sun was going to be out today. He hated it when it rained. When it rained, it looked like there wasn't a single hope in the world. But when the sun was out, he felt he could do almost anything. Almost.

As he smiled at the grinning sun, his bedroom door opened and his younger brother walked in, all dressed and ready for his first day of freshmen year. The older one looked at him.

"Wow, Al. Don't you look sophisticated." He commented, getting out of his bed.

Alphonse smiled slightly and looked down at himself. "I only have one chance to make a good impression on people." He explained and looked at his older brother who was still in his pajamas, brushing his long golden hair.

"And you, Ed, need to get ready before dad sees you."

Edward looked at the younger one and nodded, knowing perfectly well what would happen if his father saw him in this condition. Seeing the nod, Alphonse left his brother to dress in peace.

* * *

He didn't have anything good to ware on his first day. Nothing like Al. Then again, Al worked. He had a job which meant money to buy himself good clothes. Ed sighed as he looked inside of his closet. To be truthful, he didn't really have much at all. An old black hoodie sweatshirt with splashes of red, green, blue, and other color paints hung on a wire hanger. Under the sweatshirt was a simple red shirt and folded up black jeans. It was his only other outfit. And with a long, deep, depressing sigh, he took the lone hanger out of the closet and began to put on the clothes. And as he was braiding his hair, the loud, thundering steps of his father roared up the stairs.

"EDWARD!" He screamed and Ed jumped, his thin frame quaking ever so slightly but the sweatshirt was just big enough to hide it.

His father opened the door with such force, Edward was surprised that a great wind didn't push him onto his bed. He stared up at the new intruder who looked at him with disapproving eyes, shaking his head in hatred.

"You look like a bum. A girly bum. A whore."

Ed's golden eyes looked at the floor in defeat. He had been beaten down for so long, self hate had already set in. And since it did, he learned to take what was given to him. Although, that didn't stop him from anger building inside of him.

"And that's just what you are!" His father said and soon, Ed's head turned and his cheek began to sting in pain. But he ignored it. It wasn't the worst his father had done.

"Now get out of here!" And as soon as he was given the okay, Edward grabbed his bag and dashed out of his room, heading for the front door, to safety.

When he had closed it behind him, he smiled up at the sun again and tried to forget all that had just happened. After all, today was his first day of his sophomore year and he wanted to make a good impression, even his clothes were rags.

* * *

Teenagers are the most hateful creatures on the face of this Earth. They judge not only your looks, but how you walk, talk, your body language, where you sit, who you sit with, everything. Everything down to what you eat and what soap you use.

Since it was the first day, everyone was wearing their Sunday's best or Friday's worst. And as Ed looked at himself and compared him to others, he would say he was Wednesday's laundry day.

He didn't look as bad as some people but not as good as his brother.

"Are you going to be alright, Alphonse?" Ed asked, turning to his baby brother who, by height, should be the eldest. But Al nodded and smiled at his older brother.

"I will. I'll see you at lunch alright?" Ed nodded.

"See you there!" He said and waved to his brother as he walked off. He sighed slightly and pulled a rumbled paper out of his pocket to see what his first class was. And when he saw it, a simple smile was drawn across his face.

Chemistry; his favorite subject.

And by the looks of it, it wasn't to far from where he was standing.

Stuffing the paper back in his pocket, he walked to his class, looking at all the different outfits. Some girls wore dresses but most wore short shorts and thin strapped tank tops. Ed stared at them in slight disgust. How could they show off their bodies in such a manner? Most boys wore sweatshirts and shorts while others wore jeans and polo tops. But there was one thing in common with all of the people in his school save himself. They all had color in their clothing. And not just splattered on paint, actual dyed color.

But Ed didn't mind at all. He was just grateful to have clothes at all.

This thought came to him as he walked into his chemistry class. As he looked around, he saw girls sitting on their desks, their lips tied in with their boyfriends', boys throwing basketballs around, and everyone else talking as loud as they could.

He took a seat in the far right corner, as close as he could get to the window and as far as he could get from everyone.

As he sat down, the teacher walked in, slamming his books on the table, causing some to look up.

"Alright! That is enough! In your seats and eyes forward now!" He ordered.

Everyone groaned but stopped what they were doing and sat down. Ed mentally sighed and began to wonder why they were taking chemistry in the first place. But his thoughts were broken when the door opened, braking the silence. A black haired boy walked in.

"I'm sorry I'm late. My mom just passed in my transfer papers." The teacher nodded with a slight smile. "It's alright. Have a seat."

Ed stared at the student as he walked closer and closer to him. From what he gathered from his physical appearance, he was about seventeen and in his junior year of high school. When the new kid sat down, Ed stared at him for almost a minute before he realized that he was sitting right next to him. His eyes went wide and he moved his chair closer to the window. The new kid raised an eyebrow at him but shrugged and looked back the whiteboard, listening to the lesson.

Throughout the rest of class, Edward would glance over at the new student for a moment then would stare back outside, silently listening to the teacher.

* * *

The walk home was one of the most pleasant and fearful ones of the day. Ed knew that as soon as he got home, he would have loads of dishes to do, bottles to clean up, and dinner to cook. But he stared at the sky, looking for a slight sign that the sun would be there again tomorrow. He smiled as he stared, the sky blue and nearly cloudless. It was the calm before the storm and that's how he liked it.

As he turned the corner, though, he felt a presence behind him. He stopped dead in his tracks and began to fear for his life. Was it his father? As he turned around, he heard the jingling of key chains on a backpack.

The new student was walking behind him, staring at him the same way he had stared at him in class.

"Hey," he said. "You're that kid from Chem class. The one that stared at me."

Ed blushed ever so slightly and looked at the ground. "I'm sorry if you don't like being stared at." He said. The taller one simply smiled and chuckled.

"Don't worry about it. My names Roy. Roy Mustang. What's yours?"

Was this really happening? Was he, Edward Elric, really talking a decent conversion with someone other then his brother? He shudder slightly but looked up at him with a hint of confidence. "Edward. Edward Elric."

Roy smiled softly down at him. "Well it's nice to finally meet you, Ed."

Ed nodded. "Likewise. I need to get home. I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" Roy nodded. "Tomorrow."

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**A/N: Umm...review I guess?**


	3. Hey Roy

**A/N: I'm sorry I didn't post yesterday. I couldn't seem to write like how I usually do. But don't worry, I got out of my funk. Thanks for the reviews and keep them coming! Warning for crappy writing. **

* * *

The clam before the storm is usually brief. But today, it had seemed to stretch out further then it had before.

When Ed walked in, his father wasn't home. He took note of this and sighed happily.

"Brother?" Alphonse called from the kitchen. When Edward walked in, he quickly walked over and turned the sink off.

"Al, you know that I'm the one that has to do chores. If he doesn't see me doing them…" Ed frowned, not wanting to think about that at the moment. But Al nodded, understanding perfectly well what would happen if their father saw.

"I know, Brother." He said and sat on the counter, watching his older brother start the dishes back up. "So, it seems like you had a good day."

Ed smiled and nodded as he began stacking the cleaned dishes on a towel to dry. He wanted to tell his brother everything but stayed silent, staring at Al for a moment then going back to his chores. Whenever Edward did this, his brother knew that it meant that he would tell him later. Alphonse nodded with a slight smile and quickly jumped off the counter at the sound of the front door slamming shut.

For a second, Ed's hands began to shake with fear but he composed himself and continued with the dishes. Soon, he felt a warm breath on the back of his neck and his nervous shook. The strong smell of Budweiser entered his nose, his taste buds tingling.

"They aren't done yet?" He whispered into the blonde's ear. Ed shook his head.

"Not yet…"

His father stood up all the way and looked at his youngest son. "Son, don't you have homework?" And with that, Alphonse ran as fast as he could to his room, knowing well about the events that were about to happen.

Edward didn't look up but knew where his father was. He had started pacing behind him, his eyes locked on his braid. Every nerve in his body was telling him to run, to get out before the storm hit. But when this thought crossed his head, a hand gripped his arm with braking force and thrashed him around to face the taller man. The height of the man didn't scare him, nor did the fact that his father was full of brawn.

No. What really scared Edward Elric was the killing look in his eyes.

The young boy felt his body tense up and get ready for a beating as he saw the hand be raised over his father's head. When it came down, Ed felt his jaw snap just enough to pop out a few back teeth in which he spat out when he fell to the ground. Blood flowed out of his mouth and stained the white and black tiled floor.

"You're getting the floor dirty!" His father screamed and kicked him in the torso, aiming just below his ribs.

Ed let out a pained sound as he hit old wounds. His mind began to close in on itself so he wouldn't feel as much pain as he was in. But what was about to happen was something his father never did to him.

The older man picked up his son by the back of the collar, throwing the dishes out of the soaking part of the sink save for knives and silverware, and dunked Edward's head into the soapy, dirty water.

Ed thrashed his head about, trying to get out of his grasp. He could feel the bits of food that were on the dishes brush past his lips, teeth, and face. His father picked his head back up and Ed gasped for air. In the middle of coughing, his father dunked his head back in, causing the teen to trash his head once more. The more he trashed, the more the knives and silverware got dangerously close to his face. Again, his father picked his head back up. The seventeen-year-old thought that it was over until yet again, his father pushed his head back in, pushing it further down. Ed trashed and screamed into the water. When he was pulled up for a final time, the cool air stung part of his right cheek.

"Now clean up this mess!" His father said and threw him aside, going into the living room to sit down and watch the game.

Ed sighed slightly and silently, holding his cheek. When he took his hand off, a red liquid dripped from his pinky. His eyes went wide and he quickly picked up a knife and saw a huge gash on the side of his face.

The only thing that crossed his head was how hard it was going to be to hide that at school tomorrow.

* * *

On any usual day, everyone would not even bother to notice him. After all, he was an outcast. He was strange in their eyes.

But today, they would stop and stare in disgust at the pulsing infected gash on his face. Edward didn't look up from his feet to notice though. He was already gone in his own wonderland, his headphones lightly playing music just loud enough to engulf himself in his own thoughts. Every once and a while, he would look up at a girl from a different click. One of the higher ones. She would stare at him in disgust and point, whispering to her friend.

In Ed's mind, she had no right to talk about him. They didn't know each other. And then he began to wonder, what was she like behind that mask? Was she in the same kind of home as him? Or was she exactly what she seemed to be, a fake, plastic cheerleader who won everything.

When he looked up again, he stopped dead in his tracks and stared at the black headed boy he had met yesterday. He was leaning against the wall, next to their class' door. He seemed to be waiting, checking his watch and staring at it. Ed looked around to try to see who Roy could be waiting for but soon gave up when nobody walked up to him. He sighed and walked over to Roy, hoping that he remembered him from yesterday.

"Who are you waiting for?" Ed asked and Roy looked at him, smiling ever so slightly and stood up properly.

"You." He said and Ed felt his cheeks warm up in a blush.

For some odd reason, Edward couldn't look away from his taller companion. Roy's eyes had a slight shine to them but still held on to the same color of his hair. But as Ed stared into his eyes, Roy's eyes stared down at his cheek, his brow bent with worry.

"Ed, what happened to your cheek?" He asked, leaning his hand out to touch it.

Edward quickly took a small step back, his eyes wide with fear. "N-nothing. I slipped and hit a sharp rock…" He said. He tried hard not to show the pain he was feeling. Not only was his cheek burning like white fire, but his torso and head pulsed with great intensity. Roy raised his eyebrow, looking unconvinced.

"Really…?" He asked. God, even his voice showed that he wasn't buying Ed's act.

But the blonde nodded. "Yeah, you should have seen it. It was all bloody and my brother, Alphonse, was freaking out!" He said, waving his arms around as he talked. Roy watched the shorter one's hands flail as he tried to explain how it all happened and couldn't help but chuckle with amusement at the sight. Ed tilted his head and smiled, pushing him slight and ordered him to knock it off, that he wasn't funny. But this only caused Roy to laugh even more.

As Roy bent over, holding his side as he laughed, Ed stared in almost shock.

He had never made anyone laugh this much before besides Al. And as he watched Roy laughing, he couldn't help but feel himself bubble with something he hadn't felt since he was a child.

Joy.

* * *

Walking home always seemed to be full of tensing up, preparing for the worst. Getting ready for any attack, any swing of the fist that could hit him at any moment. But now, as he walked home with Roy, the rest of the world didn't seem to matter.

"So, where did you move from?" Ed asked, looking up at his companion.

"Boston." Roy answered, keeping his eyes on the sidewalk in front of him. "I feel kinda weird. Boston is such a big city and coming here, I feel taller then everyone."

Ed's eyebrow twitched. "Are you implying something?" He asked, sounding overly irritated. Roy smiled. "Well, you are a shrimp."

And the blonde began ranting about everything. About how he wasn't short, how milk is evil, and other things that Roy couldn't make out. But the sight of Ed getting freaked out about being small was just something Roy couldn't not laugh at. Ed had finally calmed down when he watched the taller one bend over with laughter and smiled, knowing his work was done. When the black haired one was finally done and stood up, they began walking again. Ed looked around, becoming very board. Couples walked down the street, people waved to others from across the road. He stared and began to wonder something.

"Hey Roy...when you walk by people, do you wonder what their life is like? Or who they are?" Ed asked, looking at all of the people that walked by.

Roy raised an eyebrow and looked around as well, watching everyone live their life. "Not really. I've never really thought of it." He said.

The rest of the walk consisted of wondering the lives of others and guessing who they really are and what they would become.

But all to soon, it all ended.

Ed stopped right in the middle of the sidewalk and looked up at the house on his left. Roy continued to walk until he noticed his companion wasn't beside him. He turned to him. "Ed?"

Edward smiled and looked at him. "This is my house. I have to go."

Roy simply nodded. "Alright, see you tomorrow." And with that, he walked off. But Edward stayed standing and staring, almost hoping he would turn around and pull him, running off with him. But this thought left his mind when Roy turned the corner. He sighed and walked into the portal to his hell, wishing his prince to come back and save him from this nightmare.

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**A/N: Review I guess? It seems people seem to like it ^^ - ADAM**


	4. Exposier

**A/N: I tried my hardest. I stayed up almost all night trying to get this chapter out of me. Warning for crappy writing and offensive language. **

* * *

All doors are different in shape, color, wood, and more importantly, sound. Some doors make no sound at all when you open them but others sound like World War II just happened to enter your room.

In the case of Edward's front door, it was a mixture of both.

And as he began to open it, he heard something that would throw others into a fit of hate but to him was a ding of bliss. His father's snore from the living room.

Ed quietly opened the door and closed it, throwing his shoes off. He tiptoed past the living room, the snore getting louder and louder as he got closer. When he passed by, he looked in the see his father sitting in his chair, fast asleep. Ed held his breath, not wanting to take any chances. The T.V. was loud enough as it was, he didn't want to add to the noise. When he had finally made it up the stairs, he let out a sigh silently and walked into his younger brother's room, closing the door behind him. Alphonse stood up from his desk, a worried look written on his face.

"Brother, what is it?" Edward waved for him to sit down, smiling ever so slightly to show that he was, after so long, truly happy. Alphonse smiled at the sight.

"Something good happen again, huh? Tell me everything." Al said as Ed took a seat on his brother's bed. Al was the only one Ed could trust. If he couldn't take it anymore, he wouldn't cry into his pillow. He would cry into Alphonse's shoulder. And when he wanted to come out to someone, he came out to Al. And, of course, he accepted his big brother for who he is.

"You know that new kid Roy? Well…I think I might like him." Ed said smiling. Al smiled as well.

But Al's smile didn't last very long.

It started fading slowly as he stared at his brother. Ed took notice of this and raised his eyebrow in question.

"What?" He asked.

"Well, Brother, have you asked Roy what his sexual orientation is? What if he isn't like you?" Ed's eyes went wide at this thought.

Roy made him feel happiness in his dark world. He didn't want to live if he wasn't in his life. Tears slowly began to build in his golden eyes as he looked back up at his brother for comfort. Al stared at him and realized just how much Roy meant to him. It was a sort of connection they held, as if they were twins. If Al felt worried, Ed would receive the feeling as well.

"Oh, Ed…I'm so sorry…" Alphonse said, feeling horrible for what he had just said. But it was true. What if this Mustang teen wasn't gay? How would his elder brother handle it? But he pushed those thoughts for when it happened and hugged Edward, holding him tightly.

Ed silently sobbed into his brother's shoulder until he felt the need to vomit.

* * *

As the weekend rolled by, Ed got sadder and quieter during the walks home. Roy had no idea why and didn't ask him, figuring that he was just lost in thought. But the real reason was that the weekend meant no walks home with Roy.

On Friday, when they stopped by Edward's home, Roy turned to him and asked him a question he had never heard from anyone before. It almost sent shivers up his spin as his taller companion spoke.

"Can I come over tomorrow?"

Ed's eyes went wide with slight fear and embarrassment. He didn't know what to say. He wanted to say yes so badly, but he was scared his father would end up hurting Roy as well. He began to stutter and fall over his words as he felt a hand rest on his shoulder from behind.

"My brother would love for you to come over! You two would have the house to yourselves since my dad will be gone almost all day tomorrow and I'm sleeping at a friend's." Ed relaxed under his brother's hand at the sound of those words.

Roy nodded with a smile. "I'll see you tomorrow, Ed." He said and ran off.

* * *

Whenever Ed caught the sight of his father pulling out of the driveway, he felt a small sense of freedom. He knew that as long as he was gone, he was safe. A small smile made it's way across his face as he watched his father start pulling his way out and onto the street.

And it wasn't long until Ed heard a wonderful knock at the door. When he made his way toward the door, he saw a piece of paper laying on the counter with his name written in big red marker. It was a chore list of things his father wanted to do. He sighed as he began to read them over. Stock the fridge, vacuum the living room, mop the kitchen and bathroom, clean the bedrooms, wash the windows, and have dinner ready by the time his father got back home. Usually, when his father left, it was to go out with his friends to go fishing. But his father always got back at five o'clock just to make sure Ed wasn't doing anything such as sneaking out or having friends over.

"Come in!" Ed called out as he looked them over again. He usually expected the door to open and be shut with such a force that the picture of his mother would fall and brake. But this time, it was carefully opened and softly shut. Slowly, the blonde relaxed.

"I'm in the kitchen." He said and put the list down. When he looked up, Roy was standing there, looking around.

"It's kind of dark, isn't it?" Ed chuckled at his statement.

"I need to wash the windows." He says, picking up the list and started to read it off. Roy stared at him and smiled.

"Well, I could help you if you want." He said, taking off his sweatshirt and putting it in the closet. Ed shook his head, fear in his eyes as he watched the taller one. He was terrified with the idea. If his father knew…

"N-no, that's okay. I can do it myself." Ed said but Roy didn't seem to pay attention. He grabbed the list out of the younger child's hands and stared at it, silently reading it over as he walked down the hall.

"To bad, I am." He said.

Ed jumped slightly, thinking over everything his father could do to him.

* * *

Usually, when he cleaned, he was silent, trying not to make a single noise at all. But today seemed brighter then the last as the radio in the hallway downstairs blasted popular music and demos of bands that may soon be famous. The smell of soap, bleach, and window cleaner was mixed with the fresh air from outside as they cleaned the windows.

Roy smiled as he cleaned the ones downstairs, scrubbing to get as much grime off as possible. The music blasted in his ears but yet, he still heard something different. It didn't come from the radio. He froze for a second and put his cloth down, walking over to the stairs. And when he looked up, he saw something that nobody, not even Al, had seen before.

Ed was there, dancing to the song as he sang into a scrub brush. He had a huge smile on his face and his actions were fluid, his body singing out to Roy like a siren in the sea. He smiled as he watched the boy dance his heart out. Near the end of the song, Ed took off his sweatshirt and commented under his breath about how hot it was under there. And when he did, Roy saw how loose the t-shirt underneath was, the light from behind Ed blinding him slightly so he could not see his features. As the song drew to an end, Roy made his way up the stairs, clapping and cheering. Ed, forgetting that he was now exposed, took a bow, his blonde ponytail coming just as loose as his clothes were. But as Roy made his way closer to him, his clapping slowed and his eyes began to bug out.

Bruises upon bruises, infected cuts and wounds, they all yelled into Roy Mustang's face.

"What's wrong?" Ed asked, tilting his head. When Roy began to pick up Ed's left arm, he then realized what Roy was staring at.

"Who…who does this to you?" Roy asked and Ed ripped his arm away from him, hugging it.

"N…nobody!" He ran to his room and slammed the door shut, putting his desk chair in it's way. When Roy started turning the knob, Ed's anxiety began to take over.

He began scratching at his neck and shoulders, dry heaving as he looked for somewhere to hide. When his eyes finally traveled towered the closet, he ran, crawling into the corner. As Roy began pushing the door open, Ed screamed, hugging his legs close to his chest.

"Ed, let me in! I can help you!" He said. Finally, the door opened, the chair flying to the middle of the room. But, when he saw that his blonde companion right away, his thoughts turned to the worst.

Ed peeked his head out of the closet for just a second, but that was the second Roy needed to most. He sighed deeply and walked over, opening the closet door only to have his heart broken at the sight of what was inside.

Edward had buried his head into himself, holding his legs close. Roy heard him sob ever so slightly as he mumbled.

"Please don't hurt me…please…I'll be good…please…"

He repeated over and over. Roy slowly went to his knees in front of his friend and put his hand on Ed's quaking head. Once he felt the physical communication, Edward froze, tensing under the hand.

"Edward…I'm not going to hurt you." Roy felt his heart coldly sink into his stomach as Ed lifted his head and stared at him. His fringed bangs stuck to the sides of his face, a look of terror and despair written all over his thin body. Silently, he pushed the bangs out of his face and smiled down at him.

"Hey. Do you want to walk me home?"

With every word that passed by Roy's lips, the more vacant Ed's face became. When Roy had finished, a small smile came across Edward's face and he nodded. After all, his favorite thing in the world was walking with Roy.

* * *

The sky was dark and overly clouded, threatening to rain at any moment. The street lights lit their path with an almost sickening yellow glow.

The whole walk to Roy's house was silent. Roy didn't dare ask who had made the marks on Edward and Ed was to busy pulling on his sleeves, trying to make sure that every part of skin was covered. He sighed after a minute or so and finally realized just how far Roy's house was.

"So…uh…do you like sports?" Ed asked, trying to bring a lighter mood between the two.

Roy almost jumped when he heard him but shrugged and looked around. "I guess I like track. I can run pretty fast and really far." He said, smiling.

When this passed threw Edward's ears, fear crept into him again. Fear that Roy might show him how fast he could run. And how far, too. Silently, he gripped Roy's sleeve. Roy chuckled and patted his head.

"Don't worry Ed, I'm not going anywhere." He said.

Those words went threw one of his ears and out the other like thin silk straight from Asia. He smiled at the thought of Roy being by his side forever, never letting him go, and never letting him get hurt.

As if on bad timing, Ed felt a drop of rain hit his noise. Then slowly another on his cheek. And on his hand, head, and soon, everywhere. He jumped and screamed lowly, with a playful smile. Roy chuckled and they jogged to his house. It wasn't that far from where they were actually. It was a simple house, two stories, a porch with a light, a very nice front yard. Ed assumed that they would part ways at the sidewalk but that was not what Roy wanted. He wanted to make his goodbye in the light, slowly drying off. So he took Ed's hand and pulled him up to the porch, looking down at him. A small smile crept across his face as he saw that Edward had a huge grin. His long blonde hair seemed to curl as it sat in lumps, stuck to his face. His golden eyes seemed to pull Roy in more and more until it was to late.

Roy leaned down and softly kissed Ed's lips ever so slightly. When he realized his actions, he pulled away. "I-I'm sorry…"

Ed shook his head, not wanting the kiss to end. He pulled on Roy's jacket. "It's okay." He said and kissed him again, standing on his toes. Roy stared at him for a minute as they kissed but slowly closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around the smaller one, holding him close. It seemed like a lifetime until their lips parted and Ed smiled happily.

"I'll see you at school." Ed said, walking down the steps.

Roy nodded and waved, walking into his own house happily.

* * *

Most people always feel like they are being watched or that they are being followed. Almost all those people can't prove that someone is actually there. But as Edward walked silently in the rain, he felt someone watching him, following him. He shook it off as normal night paranoia. That is, until he walked into his house.

Without warning, his father jumped out of his car which his parked on the side of the road and ran up the steps, plowing Ed to the ground. Ed yelped in pain and jumped when the front door slammed with such force. His father stood up, grabbing Edward's braid.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, please!" He begged his father but he didn't seem to listen as he dragged him up the stairs.

"You didn't finish your chores and dinner isn't even in the oven! And you're a queer?!" He screamed, throwing the small teen onto his bed. Ed began to realize just what was going to happen and he held himself again, his eyes wide with terror.

"If you're gonna act like a queer whore, you're gonna be treated like one!" He screamed, advancing toward the smaller blonde.

Edward trembled with fear, trying to think back about white rabbits and card soldiers.

Trying to get to his own wonderland…

* * *

**A/N: Btw, I'm bisexual, and no, I don't hate gays. I just seemingly love to torture my favorite characters. I'm horrible. Anyway, review yes? - ADAM**


	5. Getting Clean

**A/N: I might not update for a little while. But then again, I might. Warning for crappy writing and offensive language. **

* * *

On most occasions, when one wakes up and sees a wall different then their room's, they begin to wonder, 'where am I?' and 'what happened last night?'. Then they remember as they look around the room.

But, when Edward opened his eyes, he knew right where he was and what had happened the night before. He was in his father's room and what happened last night was something that nothing should happen to a child of any age. He slowly sat up, his lower half throbbing in pain as he did so. When he finally stood up, he gathered his things that sprawled across the floor and left the room, running to his own to put them on.

Just as he was finishing, a small knock was heard from his door and he froze, his heart stopping and sinking fast. As it began to open, his mind swirled and he felt tears coming on.

"Brother?" asked Alphonse.

He quickly closed the door behind him and stared at his brother, waiting for him to turn around and tell him how yesterday went. But when he turned around, this was not the brother he knew. The brother he knew had life in his golden eyes, had his hair in a braid by now, didn't look so…defeated.

Ed stared at him as the tears silently went down his cheeks. "Alphonse…" He said. His voice held no sign that he was crying even though the tears dropped dramatically.

Al walked over to his brother and held him close, petting his back. "It's okay to cry, Ed. It's alright." He said but the shorter of the two didn't budge. When he let go and looked down at him, the tears came faster then ever but yet his face didn't show the emotion.

"I know something that would cheer you up. How about we go see Roy, huh?"

As soon as his younger sibling said Roy's name, Ed jumped. He didn't want him to see Ed this way, his…dirty and used. And all at once, the emotion came to his face and he fell to his knees, crying.

* * *

When school finally came around on Monday, Roy sat by Ed's first period class, waiting for him. He had been wanting to talk about what happened the other night but he didn't see him on Sunday. And when he went to go try and visit, Alphonse turned him away saying that it was a bad idea. What was so bad about seeing the one that he liked? Did Ed not like him back?

He looked down the hall again to see just the blonde he was waiting for walking toward the class.

"Edward! Hey, I want to talk to you." He said, a smile on his face. But Ed seemed to ignore him like he had done something wrong. Roy's brow bent with worry as he walked in and after him. "Ed, what's wrong?" He asked and looked him over as he sat down.

The broken look he had made Roy bubble inside with worry. "Edward, what did he do to you?" He asked firmly but he didn't reply. Ed simply put his head down.

Roy, burning with frustration, grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him out of the class, bringing him to the stairwell not to far away so that they could talk privately.

"This is not like you. You usually talk to me everyday. I can't stand seeing you like this!" Roy began explaining, getting closer to the short one who was still dead as a pan. Roy looked down at him softly as he got close enough and put his hand on Ed's cheek, leaning down to kiss his sweet lips. They had the taste of berries and cream on them with a hint of mint and spices. When he pulled away, both of his hands were on his face, his thumbs rubbing the cheeks lovingly. "I love you. Please, tell me what's wrong. Tell me what he did to you this time." He begged, inches from his face.

Edward, at this point, wanted to continue kissing him, but all he did was look up at him, his eyes almost pleading with him in a puppy dog manner. "Can I take a hot shower?" He asked, his voice cracking ever so slightly.

Roy nodded and began walking up to the office to ask for the boys locker room keys.

* * *

Edward stared at the wall as the hot water dripped down from him, his hair sticking to every part of his body. And as he stood there, naked, he felt dirty, like he could never get clean.

But he was going to try.

He grabbed a towel that Roy had gotten for him and ripped the corner off. Putting the rag to his arm, he began to scrub. But it wasn't enough, he still didn't feel clean. So he scrubbed harder. And harder. And harder. Soon, he saw a crimson color liquid start coming down from his shoulder and he smiled, continuing to do it till his whole right arm began to bleed. As he did this, he felt the water seep into his wounds.

From outside the stall, Roy sat, staring at the door Ed was behind. When he went to look at his watch, he saw blood begin to mix with the water on the floor and his heart began to race.

"Ed?" He asked, his voice shaking as he stood up.

"I'm getting clean, Roy…" He said as even more blood dripped down.

Roy rushed over and opened the stall door, looking at the smaller one. He was much thinner then he had originally thought but what really drew his attention was Ed's right arm. It was bleeding, almost gushing out blood.

"Oh my god!" He exclaimed, grabbing the rest of the towel and wrapping it around Ed's arm. "Ed, what were you doing?!"

Ed smiled softly, looking at the towel. "I was getting clean, Roy…I want to get the dirt out…"

Roy looked at him, the water making his clothes and hair cling to his body. He shook his head and took the towel off. "You don't clean yourself that way. You scrub evenly throughout your whole body and you don't make yourself bleed." He explained, cleaning the rest of Ed off.

Edward stared up at him, pleadingly but then nodded and looked down as he began washing his back.

* * *

The walk home seemed to go on for hours. Both the blonde sophomore and the black haired junior stayed silent as they turned corners and passed by stores. When they began to pass by Ed's house, Roy grabbed the younger one's hand and kept walking. Ed began to pull back.

"Roy, I need to go home." Ed said, sounding like a child being kidnapped.

Roy looked at him. He didn't want Ed to return to that 'home', especially with the things he had been saying and doing. He frowned slightly as Edward tried to pull away. He could feel every bone in his entire hand move and it almost made him sick. Nobody should be this thin.

"Nope. We have a project to do for Chemistry due tomorrow and you need to sleep over." He said, pulling him away.

Ed kept looking back at the portal to hell and wondered what would happen to Al if he left for the night. He didn't want to find out, but there was no way of Roy letting go it seemed.

* * *

"Well, welcome to my house, Edward."

To Ed, it seemed to look more like a piece of heaven more then a house.

The lights were on making the room glow a godly white, not a mustard yellow that he was used to. There was a small closet for the shoes and inside hung umbrellas of different colors and patterns for all ages and genders. The front room's walls were white with many paintings and pictures all around, all with golden frames. A woman in a blue dress walked in and smiled at the two.

"Is this your friend sweetie?" She asked Roy in the nicest most light voice Ed had ever heard. Her black hair was long and slightly curled at the bottom.

Roy nodded, a smile on his face. "Yes, mom. This is my _special_ friend, Edward. Ed, this is my mom."

A mom. The very word sent gleeful tingles up Ed's spin. The last time he ever saw his mother was when he was about three and it was for reasons he never wanted to say.

"Hello, Edward. My son talks a lot about you. Why don't you two come into the kitchen, dinner is just about ready." She said and walked off.

Roy smiled and looked down at Ed, watching him stare around with wonder. He chuckled at the sight. When Ed looked up at him it was with a questioning look. "Does your little brother cook for you?" He asked. Roy shook his head.

"I'm an only child." He said and Ed's eyes went wide.

"An only child? Must be horrible."

Roy shrugged, taking his shoes and coat off. "At times I wish I had someone to play with but it's alright." He said, putting his things away and began helping Ed with his coat.

"And what did you mean by special?" He asked, seeming overly confused. What was so special about him anyway? He never seemed to do anything right and he had no talent, in his mind at least, whatsoever. When he looked at Roy, he saw a smile creep onto his face.

"My parents know my sexuality and are completely cool with it." He explained and looked down at the blonde lovingly. "You're special to me. That's why I said it like that." And with a smile, he kissed the top of his head and began walking into the kitchen, Ed in tow.

* * *

The theme for dinner that night was Asia. The dinning room was set up nicely, decorations form Korea, China, and Japan hung and sat in corners. The shelves were full of traditional dolls and Roy's mother even gave them traditional clothes to ware.

As Ed sat down, he stared at everything, trying to take it all in at once. So many choices of food laid on the long dining table, everything from dumplings to sushi. He had never seen so much food all at once and it clearly showed by his facial expressions. Roy smiled as he watched him from across the table. He hadn't seen Ed this happy since their first kiss.

"Alright everyone, dig in!" Roy's father announced.

But, as everyone began taking food, Ed just sat there with a smile on his face, his kimono starting to fall off his shoulders. Roy's mother looked over, tilting her head.

"Edward, dear, aren't you going to eat?" She asked.

Ed looked over at her as if she was clinically insane. "You want me…to eat with you?"

Roy's father laughed slightly, causing Ed to turn his head toward him. "Well of course. It's not everyday we meet one of Roy's special friends."

Ed blushed slightly, looking down at his hands which shook a bit until he heard Roy's voice.

"Edward," He said. "Please eat. Enjoy yourself."

* * *

Surprisingly, the house did not have a guest bedroom. So, Ed ended up sleeping in Roy's room.

He stayed awake most of the night, listening to the creaking of the house, hearing it breathe. Out in the backyard was a tree that went all the way up to the second floor. A branch outside Roy's window caught his interest. Wind chimes hung and when the wind picked up, they all chimed in angel like bliss. He smiled at the sound, hugging his pillow close. It was the first night in a long time he didn't feel scared. For once, he felt safe.

The rustle from Roy's bed caused him to sit up. When he looked over, he saw movement but didn't really see any features.

"Ed? What are you doing on the floor?" Roy asked sleepily.

Edward jumped at the sound of his voice but looked at his pillow, holding it closer. "Sleeping?" He asked, almost hoping his black haired friend would buy it.

"Come up here." He said, patting the side of the large king sized bed he wasn't sleeping on. Ed jumped, not sure if he should at first, but he did anyway. And when he did, Roy held him close and kissed the top of his head. "It's okay. I won't hurt you." He said and began to fall asleep again.

Ed buried his head into Roy's chest, smiling slightly as he took in the teen's scent. He smelt of freshly cut grass and lemon soap as well as burning oak. It seemed to draw him in even more, wanting to get closer and closer to the Mustang child.

"Ed…" Roy mumbled.

The blonde jumped, believing he was doing something wrong until Roy asked him a very serious question. One that he thought he would never hear.

"Would you be my boyfriend…?"

Boyfriend? Edward's heart began to flutter as his eyes did the same as they closed. He smiled softly into Roy's chest.

"Yes…" He muttered and fell asleep.

* * *

"Alphonse! ALPHONSE! Where's that brother of yours!?" His father's voice roared threw the house.

"At a friend's house, working on a project." He answered. But sadly, that was not what his father wanted to hear. Hohenheim picked up a dirty frying pan from the sink and, with all his strength, collided it with Al's head, causing him to hit the floor.

"Ow!" Al exclaimed.

"That was not the answer I wanted!" His father yelled and began to advance toward the young teen, pan in hand.

* * *

**A/N: Umm...review? Was it any good? Anyway, thank you for your time. - ADAM**


	6. Snow

**A/N: I have every chapter all laid out perfectly. Warning for crappy writing and offensive language as well as mentions of rape.**

* * *

When one wakes up, usually what is happening outside, what they first hear, or who they first see effects on their mood for that day. But, for one small blonde, it depended on everything, from all five senses.

If he heard his father, he would tense. If he smelt alcohol, he would get an overwhelming sense of fear. If he tasted something awful in his mouth, felt his father's bed covers over his bare body, and saw the wall just across from him that contained a mirror, showing him his father's sleeping body behind him, he kept to himself and just didn't want to be alive anymore.

But strangely, none of those things happened this morning.

When he woke up, the first thing that started working right away was his sense of smell. And what he smelt was faint, but was the most amazing thing in the world. Bacon could be smelt cooking downstairs as well as eggs. The only time he ever smelt that at his house is if he was cooking it for his father and brother. He had never once had it before, the only thing he ever ate was either bread and whatever they served at school.

The second was his hearing. He heard the bacon sizzle downstairs and the wind chimes outside, accompanied by the sound of bluebirds singing. When he heard the sound of feet coming up the stairs, he sat up, rubbing his eyes, and looking around. He was still in Roy's room. Ed smiled as he looked around, seeing pictures of Roy growing, trophies from a nearby little league, science fair ribbons, and pinewood derby cars lay on shelves. Getting up and feeling a rug floor under his feet warmed him right up.

The door slowly opened and Roy popped his head in, smiling at the small teen. "Good morning, Edward. Breakfast is almost done, you might want to get dressed."

Ed looked down at the clothes he was wearing. His sweatshirt hoodie covered most of him and even hid his boxers. He looked away as he stared at the rugged floor, feeling embarrassed and overly exposed. "Umm…Roy? Can I borrow some clothes?" He asked, rubbing his arm, trying to comfort himself.

Roy smiled slightly with a small chuckle escaping his lips. "Of course, Ed."

* * *

"So, did you boys sleep well?" Roy's mother asked.

"Yeah, we did, Mom."

"How does everything taste?"

"Great, Mr. Mustang. It's amazing."

Ed felt strange, eating a fancy breakfast, wearing clean clothes. It was all new to him. Roy had given him a black long sleeved shirt and a red wind breaker with black jeans. They were still really big on him but he didn't mind, feeling fresh and clean for the first time in so long was overly amazing.

He stuffed his face to an extent and smiled as he felt his stomach fill up. He didn't want to leave but he knew he had to. He couldn't leave Al alone with…with _HIM_. It was the thing he was most scared of. Alphonse was his little brother and he promised when the were smaller that he wouldn't let anything happen to him. Ed didn't care what Hohenheim did to him, not even what happened the other night. He couldn't let that happen to his sweet little sibling. The thoughts of it happening period scared him to the point of no return. And that's when he stood up.

"I need to get going. I'm sorry for any trouble I had caused you." He said.

Mr. Mustang shook his head, a smile on his face. "Not at all, Edward. Come back anytime, we're happy having you."

What Roy's father said made him want to stay even more but he couldn't. Maybe, someday, he would come back with Al. They could run away and tell them everything. They could get rid of Hohenheim forever. He smiled at the idea and nodded, walking to the door. As he was about to leave, he felt a hand grab hold of his own, causing him to look up. Roy stood there, worry crossing his face.

"Ed, you can stay. Please stay. I want to protect you." He said, giving Ed a small peck on the lips.

But the blonde smiled and shook his head, knowing better. "I need to get back to Al. I can't leave him alone. I'll come back, Roy. I promise I will."

* * *

His hazel gold eyes slowly opened, hissing with slight pain.

He felt sore everywhere, mainly in his torso area where his father's boot collided so many times the night before. As he sat up, trying work through it all, he began to wonder, 'Is this what Brother goes threw…all the time?'.

He hated it. It burned him inside. Why did his brother stay for so long, having to have to deal with this every night? If it happened to him as much as it did his brother, he would have left long ago.

The sound of the front door brought both fear and relief into Alphonse's heart. He knew his father was still sleeping, but did Ed know?

As his bedroom door began to open, he jumped, almost wanting to run into his closet and hide until he saw that it was his older brother, eyes wide at the sight of him.

"Alphonse? Did he do this to you?" He asked bending down to him, looking over his wounds.

Al took note of the new clothes Ed was wearing and began to fear for him. If his father had found out then Ed would be in a load of trouble. He shook his head and stood up, ignoring the soreness and pain.

"It's nothing, Brother." He said, looking threw his closet for some old rag clothes for Ed but was stopped by his brother's thin arm.

"Al, this isn't nothing. He can't do this to you. If he touches you again, I'll kill him." The last few words began to drip venom as well as his golden eyes. This was the first time Al had seen him like this and it almost scared him.

"But what about you, Brother? Why can't he do this to me but he can do it to you?"

"Because, I deserve this. You don't. You're just a child."

"So aren't you! Ed, every time he lays a hand on you, I'm scared he's gonna kill you!" Tears began to threaten Al's eyes, but Ed didn't notice.

"He won't kill me. I can take a lot."

"But what happens when your body decides it's to much? You're only human, Edward! Do you not realize that you can die from what he's doing to you!? I don't want to lose you too, Brother!" Al fought the tears, seeing tears form in the smaller one's eyes as well.

"Don't you think I know that?! I'm scared too, Al!"

The sentence seemed to be a door that trusted open and exposed many different emotions he never let out to anyone, not even Alphonse himself. He fell to his knees crying, holding himself close as he sobbed out his words.

"I'm scared…I'm really scared…I'm scared I'm gonna die…I don't wanna die! Please, I don't wanna die!" He sobbed out.

And Al felt like he could do was watch and try to comfort his brother as much as he could. He held him close and patted his head, stroking his long, sun gold hair.

"SHUT UP!" They heard as their father's bedroom door slammed shut and his feet began banging on the floor.

Ed turned to his brother. "Alphonse, you need to hide. Get in the closet."

"What, no, Ed-"

"Now!" He said and pushed Al in, closing the door and stood in the middle of the room, almost waiting.

As Hohenheim walked in, Ed looked at him, his tears stopping as he put on a straight face. When the first hit came, Al looked away, trying to ignore it all.

* * *

Snow was a beautiful thing. It was pure and untainted. It was free and soft as it fell to the ground.

When it first snowed, it was both a very happy day and a very disturbing day.

Edward and Alphonse walked to school with Roy that day and Al smiled as he watched Roy slip his hand into Ed's. It made him feel happy that Ed had finally found some sort of light in all of this.

The snow started in the middle of chemistry class and Ed smiled, shaking Roy slightly. The older teen had fallen asleep during the movie they were watching but woke up and looked at the younger one when he was shaken. Ed pointed toward the window and softly whispered that it was snowing. Somehow, even though the movie was playing, every teen in the room as well as the teacher heard and they all turned their heads toward the windows. It seemed like a fight was going on outside as they all rushed out of their seats to watch the pureness fall from the heavens. Luckily, Ed and Roy got there faster then the rest of them, being so close to the windows. Edward smiled up at the sky as he watched the snow cover the parking lot, almost giving it a clean look. He wished to go outside and run around in it, hoping that it would clean him as well and save him, giving him a pure soul and an untainted body.

Even though some things only exist in fairy tales and story books, it was still a great thing to hope for.

As the day went by, Ed began to have more and more of an itch to go outside. Roy smiled at the teen as he would stare at the clock, twist and turn in his seat, and scribble on pieces of paper to occupy himself. He found it cute how frustrated he was at the slowly ticking clock. Every time he looked at it and saw that it wasn't even a minute after the last time he looked at it, his cheeks puffed out and he narrowed his eyes. Roy would end up chuckling at the sight and would pat his shoulder, telling him to calm down.

When the bell finally rung, Ed's golden eyes began to twinkle like a holiday candle and he bolted out of the room, running right outside to stand, staring at the sky with the wonder of a child. His smile began to glow in Roy's eyes and he smiled, looking at the sky with him.

"It's amazing, isn't it?" Ed asked. "I mean, the snow. It's been around for as long as we have and it still looks brand new. Completely untouched."

Roy nodded, thinking it over in his head. He remembered playing with this same snow when he was a child, making snow men, throwing snow balls at the other children. But, yet, every year, the snow came down and looked brand new. He smiled at the memories and looked down at Ed.

"Hey, Edward," He said. "did you ever play in the snow as a child?" He asked and watched his companion's face slowly fall.

He shook his head. "No…I never did. My father never let me. But I've watched Al from the window and it looks like fun." He said and sat down. The snow right away started seeping into his pants but he didn't care.

Roy looked down and watched as he crumpled up a bunch of snow into a ball. When he was satisfied, Ed stood up and showed Roy his masterpiece. His first ever snowball.

"See? I know plenty." He said and smirked, looking up at his taller lover with mischief in his eyes.

When Roy saw this, he laughed and began running away. Ed laughed and threw the snowball straight at the middle of Roy's back, hitting it just right to knock him down.

For about ten minutes, this went on. Ed would throw snowballs at Roy while he ducked for cover. And every time the blonde was hit with one, the snow would sneak it's way down Ed's shirt, causing him to wiggle and shriek with joyous glee, begging for him to help get it out. And, as Ed stood up, after making his last one, Roy screamed from behind him, a snowball in hand and ready to attack. Ed turned around and screamed back, falling down. As he fell, his foot caught behind Roy's, causing him to fall on top of him.

Snow began to melt and seep into the back of Ed's sweatshirt but he didn't seem to care as he stared up into Roy's onyx eyes. Every time he stared into them, his pain, his fear just seemed to melt away faster then the snow. Their faces were but mere millimeters apart but neither of them moved. They just stared into each other's souls. As Roy stared into the young blonde's eyes, he was taken away by the amazing color but felt a ping of sorrow. He saw how much pain Ed had gone threw and felt hopeless. All he ever wanted to do since the day they met was take his pain away. And every time they kissed, he felt he was doing so. He leaned forward and placed his lips on the younger one's. They tasted like vanilla ice cream and cherry soda pop and as he lifted his face to release the kiss, he wanted to go for more, hungering for his taste. Ed closed his eyes and leaned up, kissing him back and holding it. His lips were soft and, to Ed, Roy tasted like black licorice and hot rock candy.

Roy pushed in on Ed's lips, wanting more of his sweet taste and softness. It caused the smaller one to lean back into the snow. The black haired teen licked his lover's lips, taking in his sweet smell at the same time. He seemed to smell of vanilla and fresh roses no matter what and it drew Roy closer and closer to him. Ed moaned ever so slightly as Roy bit on his bottom lip. He opened his mouth and let him enter and explore.

Just as Roy started bringing his hand up Ed's thin frame, trying to trace every bone that stuck out, the honking of a car was heard and the two quickly separated. When Roy looked at the driver, his heart sank to the deepest pits of his stomach.

It was Ed's father, staring at them.

"Edward! Son, no kissing in public." He said in a nicer tone then his usual voice.

It threw Roy off as he looked down at Ed whose eyes were wide with horror and his knees shook.

"Come on! I'll drive you home!" Hohenheim said with a smile on his face.

Ed nodded and looked at Roy as if he was on death row and about to die. "Goodbye, Roy." He said, his voice shaking and he ran off, getting into the car.

Roy stood there and watched as they drove off, wanting ever so badly to run after them.

* * *

As they walked threw the door, Al wasn't anywhere in sight. It worried Ed and he began shaking yet again, scared to ask. It was strange, he didn't start yelling at him right away. In fact, as they walked in and they took their shoes off, he smiled at Edward and happily told him that Alphonse was at a friend's house.

"And I have the greatest surprise for you, Eddie." He said, as if him and Ed were thick as thieves.

"You have a new room! It's bigger then your old one and you have a bigger bed, too! Do you want to see it?"

Ed, scared of saying no, nodded as he rubbed his arms. Hohenheim nodded and began walking him over to the basement. Ed's mind began to swirl and his stomach did flip flops as they ascended further down the steps. When they got to the bottom, a few candles lay on the floor with a box of matches. A huge stained mattress lay on the floor, covering up most of the room. There was no blanket nor pillows and the only light at the moment came from a small window on the wall just above his bed.

When Ed took his first step on the concrete floor, he felt his feet begin to develop frost bite. He shook from the cold and looked at his father whose smile turned into the same grin he saw the other night.

"This is where you'll be living from now on."

Ed's eyes went wide and he looked around, walking closer to the mattress. "Oh, and you're not going to school anymore."

The young blonde's heart sunk into his stomach and a lump began to form in his throat. If he couldn't go to school, he couldn't get out. And if he couldn't get out, he couldn't see Roy…

He looked at his father, tears in his eyes. "But don't worry, son. You have a steady job now." Ed watched as his father walked up the stairs and opened the door, letting someone in. It was the doctor of a nearby clinic that, in fact, it was the same doctor that helped deliver Edward.

"Well, well. You sure grew up nicely." The doctor said, looking Ed up and down.

Edward looked to his father, his eyes begging to help him. But his father just stared down at him, a sick smirk on his father. "You are now what you have been acting since you met that Mustang kid. You whore."

His father closed the door and smiled softly as he listened to the sweet chimes of his oldest son's screams, cries, and moans. About an hour or so later, the doctor came back up, adjusting his tie and handed Hohenheim a one hundred dollar bill.

"He was very nice. Very loud, though." He commented and walked out as if nothing had happened.

Hohenheim then smirked, taking out a key and locking the door to the basement. As he began walking away, he heard Edward's screams and cries as he banged on the door.

"Dad please! Please let me out! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"You should have thought about it earlier, you slut."

Edward shook as he made his way back down the stairs and sat on the mattress, curling up. His hair was out of it's braid and fell everywhere. But he didn't care. He silently sobbed, his hands in fists against his chest.

"Roy…Roy help me please…" He sobbed out and repeated until he fell asleep.

* * *

**A/N: I'm a horrible person, aren't I? Anyway, um, review I guess? Thank you for your time. - ADAM**


	7. Vanilla and Roses

**A/N: Hi, I'm ADAM, and now, let's get serious. Child abuse does in fact happen and it could happen to anyone. If you think someone is being abused, try and talk to them, try to get them to talk it out. The following site has some things on what you can do to help someone who is being or has been abused. **** . .au/parents_carers_and_families/for_young_people/problems_need_help/know_someone_whos_being_ ****. Warning for crappy writing, language, offensive language, and mentions of rape.**

* * *

When you truly love someone and have a special moment with them, let it be your first kiss or your first time popping the cherry, whatever they love and you see it or hear it, you think of them. For some, it's a book or perhaps a song, maybe even the sound of a bell. But for Roy Mustang, it was the snow.

And, sadly, it had been snowing almost everyday.

As he walked to school, he would pass by Edward's house and glance at it, wanting to knock on the door and ask where he was but he never mustered the guts to. He would continue walking to school, alone.

And during chemistry, he would look at his empty desk and try his hardest to imagine his blonde lover sitting beside him, cheeks puffed in frustration at the test they were having. But his imagination only seemed to make it worse when the bell rang and Ed didn't get up with a grin on his face, asking Roy what was for lunch.

At lunch, it was even worse.

All of the couples sat together and would talk about the day, or about the Holiday Dance coming up on Friday, or about what they were going to do later on that night. But when he looked up to where Ed would usually sit across from him, he realized how alone he was.

It worried him, Edward not being in school. How much trouble did he get Ed in? His heart began to race and his mind was flooded with all the things his father could be doing to him. For all he knew, Ed could be…

No.

No, he couldn't be.

Edward was stronger then that. Even though he never believed he was, he was. Roy saw it in him.

On the walk home, he stared at the snow falling from the sky and felt utterly heartbroken. He licked his chapped lips and tasted vanilla ice cream and cherry soda pop. He hated how Ed's taste still lingered but he loved it at the same time. It was one of the only things he had to hold onto. After all, it had been weeks since he had seen the sophomore. Thanksgiving had already passed and he knew that Ed had nothing to eat that day. And with Christmas coming up around the corner, he had to find him.

When he walked passed the blonde's house, he looked up into Ed's bedroom window. And strangely, there was no light. Edward always had a light on near his window. It was comforting for the young blonde. And when Roy didn't see it, his heart sunk into his stomach and he ran to his house. The cold air pierced his lungs, threatening to take away every last breath he had, but he kept running.

When he finally got home, he threw his things aside and ran into the living room where his father sat, reading a small book. But, as soon as the front door slammed shut, Mr. Mustang looked up, eyes wide.

"Roy! You know bet-"

"Edward's missing!" Roy screamed.

Mr. Mustang stared at him, his eyes widened at the news. He put his book down and stood up, looking down at his son. "What?"

"He hasn't been to school in almost a month and I don't think he's at home. Dad, I'm worried, his father beats him!"

"Beats him? And you didn't tell me and your mother?!" His father yelled, becoming overly enraged.

Roy stared up at him. "I'm sorry, but please! We need to call the police, he could be dead!" Tears began to threaten the teen but he swallowed them as his father agreed and ran to get the phone. But as his father began to argue with the police, he felt a single tear fall down his face. Then another. And another.

* * *

With each step that he took, he felt the tension rise and his heart pounded as if he truly was ascending into hell.

The spoon inside the bowl moved around with each step he went down and he hoped that both the soup and sandwich on the side were still warm by the time his brother got to eat it. Alphonse kept his eyes on the two little bottles of soda, making sure they didn't fall and become flat. When he finally made it down the stairs, he looked upon his brother for the first time since his 'new job'.

Edward was pale and, if it was possible, thinner then before. His boxers seemed to come down slightly but he couldn't tell with his sweatshirt being so big. His long golden hair was still out and had seemed to grow even more. Even though he only washed once a week in cold water, it still seemed beautiful. When Ed looked up at his younger brother, his eyes didn't hold the same glitter as they used to.

The sight of his older brother made him want to be sick. How could he let it go this far? He had to get Ed out of here, somehow.

"Al?" Ed's voice was scratchy and sounded like he came back from a concert where he had been yelling all night. "What are you doing here?"

"I brought you some food and a blanket." Al said, setting the tray down next to Edward.

He took his backpack off and pulled out a red blanket. It wasn't all that big, but it did look warm in Ed's eyes and he took it right away, wrapping it around himself. He began to feel warmer by the second and a small smile appeared on his face.

"I can't stay for long, Brother, father has a client coming down soon. I just want you to know that I love you. And that Roy loves you. And we'll be working together to get you out." He said, bending down next to Ed.

Ed smiled softly. "Thank you, Alphonse. I love you too. Now, get to your room before he finds out." He said.

As Al ran up the stairs, Edward watched silently. When he heard the door close and lock, he quickly began eating.

The feeling of the warm soup going down his throat was amazing but, at the same time, horrible. It reminded him of everything he had to do for the past few weeks. And it didn't help that it was creamy and thick just like…

He shook his head and began eating the sandwich. As he did, he heard the door unlock and he quickly hid everything his brother had given him and sat on the bed, ready for his next costumer.

It was the store clerk from down the street. He looked Edward up and down, checking him out as all the others did and smirked. "My, my. Hello there." Edward stood up, putting his hands around the waist band of his boxers. "Hello." He said, his voice sounding a bit better.

The clerk walked over and looked at his hair, watching it fall all over him and took notice of something. "You look more like a girl then a boy. Can you act like one?"

Edward smirked, going by the act his father had planned out for him. He felt if he acted as sexy as possible, he would earn more money. If he earned more money, his father would be pleased with him and would let him out of the basement. He moved his hips back and forth like any female he ever saw do when they walked and made his way to the clerk. Throwing his arm over his shoulder, he patted his eyes and told the man he would try his best.

At that point, he had zoned out and left into his own world, not wanting to remember this life.

* * *

He hated it. He truthfully hated his life.

When his mind snapped back to reality, he was laying, naked, on his bed. His eyes blankly stared at the ceiling and he listened to the store clerk's movements. He listened as he got dressed and began to walk up the stairs, knocking on the door four times meaning he was done. He heard the door unlock and open only to be closed once more. The sounds of their muffled voices echoed throughout the basement and he did not move, trying to make out what they were saying. His heart jumped as the store clerk said that he had food and drink downstairs and went further down as his father yelled in anger. But his father apologized to the clerk, took the money, stashed it away, and walked him to the door. When it was all done, he ran to the basement and unlocked it, running downstairs.

"EDWARD _FUCKING_ ELRIC!" He screamed.

Ed gasped and jumped, grabbing his sweatshirt and hugging it, crawling into a corner.

"What's this I hear about soup and grilled cheese!?" He asked as he advanced toward the teen. As he did, he stepped on just that, the soda bottles rolling out. He picked one up, looking it over.

"Soda? Who gave you soda?!"

His father's words echoed and made him seem bigger then he ever had before. Ed shook, not answering. He didn't want to drag Alphonse into this. It would mean trouble for the both of them. He shook his head.

"I don't know." He squeaked out.

"Bullshit!" His hand went up and created a fist. When it came down, it collided with Edward's cheek, causing him to fall over.

"Was it your brother?!" He screamed. When Ed didn't answer, he bent down to his level and looked him straight in the eyes. "Edward, if you tell me, I won't hurt him."

Silence rang loudly between the two before Ed finally nodded. When he did so, Hohenheim nodded as well and walked upstairs, not locking the door. The blonde sighed, thinking it was over until two sets of feet came back down the stairs. When he looked, he saw that Hohenheim was dragging Al down with him. Ed's eyes went wide.

"You said you wouldn't hurt him!" He yelled at his father when Al was pushed onto the bed.

Hohenheim shook his head. "I'm not going to. You are."

Alphonse sat up and looked up at his father. "What?" He said, sounding extremely scared. Their father nodded his head and ripped his youngest son's shirt off.

"Edward, punish your brother. Punish him the way I punish you for something like this." He said and took a seat on a stool that sat in the corner.

Ed looked at his brother with pleading eyes, almost begging for him to run back upstairs. But Al shook his head, knowing what the other teen wanted to say. And suddenly, it was almost as if Ed wasn't Ed anymore. The blonde picked up the match box that sat beside the candle on the floor and took a single match out.

Alphonse took in a shaky breath, ready for the punishment of a lifetime.

* * *

Blood.

It had a beautiful crimson color to it.

But, when it is another person's crimson on your hands, you are stained.

And that's just what Edward was. Stained.

He stared at his hands as Alphonse's blood dripped from them. His eyes began to water up as he looked at the stairs and saw Al walking away. His arms had scratch marks all over them and dried blood covered his face. When the door closed and locked, he heard them start to drive away, more then likely to the hospital.

His eyes traveled back down to his hands and he screamed, bending over in sorrow as he began to cry.

* * *

_KNOCK_

_KNOCK_

_KNOCK_

The door opened slowly, letting in more light then what the nightstand lamp had to offer. His father stood there and sadly smiled, trying to get his son to smile as well.

"Roy, do you want to eat up here?" Mr. Mustang asked.

Roy shook his head, clinging to the sweatshirt Ed had left behind so long ago. His father nodded and closed the door. The teen looked down at the hoodie and sniffed it softly, taking in the scent of vanilla and fresh roses. He had been doing this since he had gotten home but he didn't seem to stop, even though the scent was engraved into his head. Every once and a while, he'd look at the picture on his night stand of him and Ed and lick his lips, faintly tasting the ice cream and cherry soda.

Roy sighed and closed his eyes, seeing Ed's smile. So many images of Edward swirled around, and, for a minute, he was almost at peace. He imagined that his blonde lover was in his arms, silently falling asleep with him.

* * *

**A/N: Don't worry, it'll start to look better soon. Or will it? Thank you for your time. - ADAM **


	8. Call for Help

**A/N: Alright, so I updated the rating on this story due to future chapters. It will get pretty bad and go into great detail about what happened. I'm a horrible person. Warning for crappy writing, offensive language and mentions of rape.**

* * *

One of the worst times to drive is in the winter.

It will snow one day, become really hot the next, melting the snow, and then get really cold, freezing all the water on the roads.

And this is the reason Mrs. Mustang doesn't drive in the winter. Ever since she was little, she's had a fear of getting into car crashes. And so, in result, Mr. Mustang drove everywhere during the chilly season. He was always very careful during this time of the year, always looking out for black ice.

Ever since the day his son ran home and reported the missing Edward, he would stop and park his car down the block, just far enough from the blonde's house for him to see and for nobody to notice. He would sit there for at least an hour, sometimes, on his days off, about four. He watched as men from all around the town came in and out of the house. When they came out, they would adjust their tie or be putting on their jacket or finish putting on their shirt. It made him sick just thinking what Hohenheim was doing to that poor child.

But, of course, the police wouldn't cover this case. He didn't have any evidence showing the abuse, no pictures of the wounds.

He sighed as he stared at the house, wanting to go inside. But what would he do then? What would happen if he couldn't make it out with Ed? It would just put him in more trouble then he already was.

* * *

Edward sat, shivering from the cold that echoed throughout the basement. The only thing that gave him a bit of warmth was the candle that was only lit for an hour during the night. His father took the blanket Alphonse had given him and burned it in front of his eyes.

When the door opened, he slowly looked toward the stairs to see who his next client was. He turned his head away when he saw that it was Hohenheim coming down the stairs. He only caught a glimpse of the father before turning his head so he didn't get a good look at what was in his arms. Ed coughed deeply, his chest burning as he did so.

"Here." His father said and threw a set of clothes on the bed. It wasn't much, just an old sweater and a pair of shorts. But Ed looked at them as if they were made of pure silk. "Put these on."

Edward looked up at his father who was counting a roll of many bills. "W…what?"

Hohenheim looked at him with a slight glare. "Did I stutter? Put the clothes on, you're going out to make more money for this family." He said and went back to counting his bills.

Shakily, Edward stripped himself of his normal sweatshirt and boxers, putting on the shorts and sweater as quickly as possible. A small bubble of hope began to grow inside of him as he made his way up the stairs. This was a step closer to getting out. To becoming free. But his thoughts and hopes were crushed when they reached the top of the stairs. His father turned to him, a slight smirk on his face.

"And don't you run. Not only will I hurt Al, but I will find you. I _always_ know where you are." He said, his voice seeping into Ed's ears like toxins.

His golden eyes went wide but he nodded, understanding completely.

* * *

The freshly fallen snow sneaked it's way down into the young teen's rain boots as he stood on the corner of a busy street. He shook ever so slightly at the feeling of cold water seeping into his feet and shook even more as it began to freeze into a frost. The shaking would stop every time he saw his father slowly drive up the street, turn the corner, and go back down another street. And every time his father did this, Ed would bend over slightly, making his shorts go up.

Nobody could really tell the difference. He had a thin frame that resembled that of a female. And his long hair didn't seem to give him much help. Men would stare at him as he would bend over to pet a stray or to pick up something. Just as he was doing so, a car pulled up in front of him. It seemed familiar in a way but he couldn't put his finger on it. The window slowly rolled down and a voice called out to him.

"Edward."

The voice was deep and strong, but still had a hint of kindness to it. And when he looked up, his heart stopped and tears threatened to form in his eyes.

It was Mr. Mustang, sitting there looking at him in sorrow. "Edward, get in the car, I'm taking you with me."

The blonde shook his head, looking around for his father. "I can't…I-I can't…" He whimpered out, holding himself.

Mr. Mustang looked around as well, making sure he wasn't around and then turned to Ed once more, a stern look on his face. "Edward Elric, get in the car right now. My wife and son have been worried sick about you just as much as I have. I promise everything will be fine. Nobody will be hurt. We'll help you."

The young teen stared at him and took in what he had said. Was he really going to help him and Al? Taking one more look around, he jumped into the car without much thought, and leaned down so that he wasn't seen by passers and other drivers. Mr. Mustang gave a small smile and began driving again.

"I need to go to the store first," He said. "Do you think you can handle it in here?"

Edward nodded, his eyes as wide as a child's on Christmas. He had never been in such a car before. The seats were grayish and soft, seeming to fit every curve in his small body. And heaters worked all around him, warming him up like a fireplace. Ed smiled and seemed to curl up in the passenger seat like a cat. The warmth felt so good, he even looked up at Mr. Mustang and uttered a soft thank you before falling asleep.

* * *

It takes about eight minutes for the normal human being to fall asleep.

But sadly, the time frame between store and the Mustang residence was only about five minutes when driving.

Ed softly smiled as he listened to the low roar of the engine as they smoothly drove back to the wonderful home he thought he would only go back to in his dreams. They didn't seem to hit any bumps as they drove, and the purring of the car seemed to sooth the blonde to sleep. When he felt the car stop and shut off, he jumped and looked around, finding himself outside of Roy's house.

"Run as fast as you can inside. I have clothes for you." Mr. Mustang said and began getting out of the car.

The young teen nodded and ran as fast as he could into the house, just as he was told. As soon as he took a step into the wonderful, heavenly home, he sighed in relief and felt his heart fall into his stomach. It was a rush, but the feeling of running away from his father made him sick, knowing what would happen if he was caught.

The front door closed and when Ed heard it lock, he jumped. It was the same lock that was on the basement door and it scared him, even sending shivers down his body. He stood up and looked at Mr. Mustang worriedly. But the man only smiled at him.

"The clothes are in the bathroom for when you take your shower. But, I suggest that you go see Roy first." He said. "He's been in his room for almost a week just hugging your old sweatshirt."

What? Someone missed _him_? The very thought shocked Edward. His eyes went wide and then narrowed at the ground in thought. A memory began to form into his head but he shook it off, not wanting to see it right then and there. He nodded and began to make his way up the stairs and to the young junior's room.

* * *

The crystal vase caught the light of the nightstand lamp and acted as a prism, setting out many different rainbows to all of the walls. The roses inside had began to welt, petals everywhere from older ones.

His mother always tried to clean them, but Roy would stop her, insisting he would do it later. But he never did. He would leave the roses where they were, hoping that the smell of the red flower would mix with the smell of the vanilla air freshener that plugged into the wall. Every once and a while, it did. It would mainly be in the morning. He'd wake up and imagine the blonde had been in his room sleeping with him. But as he went about his own life, he realized that the child had not been in his house at all.

Roy held the picture of him and his lover softly in his hands, studying it closely.

The picture was taken the night Edward was over. His kimono was very loose on him, part of it sliding off of the young sophomore's shoulder. He seemed to try and hide inside of the garment, his body language showing that he didn't like his picture taken. But he had a slight smile on all the same. His golden eyes shined perfectly, no red eye at all. The long golden braid lay on his shoulder. It was dirty, but Roy still longed to stroke it, put it behind Edward's ear, and whisper words of love to him. Tell him that he would protect him.

A soft knock came at the door and it caused the black haired teen to grumble on about how he didn't want to eat, just be left alone. But when he opened the door, his heart jumped to his throat.

There stood Edward Elric and all his golden glory.

He was thinner then Roy remembered which worried him to great extents. The clothes on his frame seemed to bag even more. When he looked into his eyes, he saw how much pain he was in and had been put through. But he smiled, a slight twinkle coming back to the melted gold orbs.

"Hi Roy." His voice was scratchy and dry but Roy didn't care.

Tears began to pour from his eyes and he held the young boy in his arms tightly, taking in his amazing scent.

"I missed you so much…" He mumbled into Ed's boney shoulder.

Ed nodded and started to silently cry into his lover's shoulder. "Don't let me go!" He begged.

"I won't."

* * *

The hot water stung slightly but it never felt this good.

Edward smiled as he washed his hair, not daring to look down. When he was done washing his hair, he even chuckled, petting his now overly soft hair.

As he slowly made his way down, he felt the pit in his stomach worsen. He looked down at himself and shivered, wanting to escape his own skin.

"I don't like this…" He muttered.

Roy put down the magazine he was reading and looked at the shower curtain. Ed didn't want to be left alone for even a second and asked him if he wouldn't mind sitting in the bathroom until he was done. And, of course, Roy said yes.

"What don't you like?" Roy asked, standing up.

"This…this _feeling_…" He said, sitting down. He looked at the shower curtain and opened it slightly, looking up at Roy in a pleading manner. But the junior shook his head and helped the blonde out of the tub, starting to dry him off.

"It'll all be okay, Ed. I promise. We're gonna take care of you."

And that's when it hit him.

He forgot about Alphonse!

For all he knew, Al was in the basement, being put through hell. He couldn't let that happen to him. He would never be able to come back from that the same.

Ed quickly threw on his clothes, not really caring if the shirt was backwards or that the zipper was down on his pants. He had to get home as fast as he could. Running as fast as he could, he pushed pass Roy, going down the stairs.

"Edward! Dad!"

And, almost as if it was planned, Mr. Mustang stood in front of the door, holding the smaller boy close. "You're not going out there, son." He said.

Ed began pounding on the older man's torso, trying to get away. "My brother is still there! My brother is still there!" He yelled, beginning to claw at his face, crying slightly as he did.

Mrs. Mustang ran in and watched. When the young teen had given them the news, her heart jumped into her throat and she looked at her husband with pleading eyes.

"Dear, you have to go get him too. We can't separate them! If we're getting one out, we're getting all of them out." She said.

Now, when a wife tells her husband to do something, it had better be done or hell would be paid. Normally, he would have called the police and had them go get him. But, when he looked into his wife's eyes, he knew he had to go get Alphonse _now_.

* * *

Usually, when one goes to the bar, they smell sweet beer and other fine alcohol products mixed with cigarettes. And that's just what Mr. Mustang thought the house was going to smell like. But as he walked in, he proved himself wrong.

It smelt worse.

Not only did it smell like a mixture of alcohol and cigarettes, but it held a smell of rotting flesh, and waste from animals as well as humans.

As he walked threw, he saw no sign of the horrible rapist. On the walls hung pictures of Al and Ed when they were younger, of Hohenheim and Trisha getting married, and of the boys as babies. He shook his head and kept walking. The urge to yell out the younger brother's name was strong, but he stayed silent, not knowing where the child would be.

As he looked around, he saw an open door leading into the basement. He took a deep, shaky sigh and began his short trek down the stairs. As he did, a shiver ran up his spin. And when he looked at the corner of the room, he found out why.

A mattress lay, springs coming out from all ends of it. Blood and semen stained the entire bed. Just as he was wondering what happened, it hit him.

This was Edward's room.

Vomit began to rise up from the bottom of his stomach and leak out of his mouth, soon coming out in chunks. When he was done, he whipped his mouth and looked over at the bed again, glaring at it.

"The bastard…"

Suddenly, a sharp pain entered his side. He yelped and looked down to see a single blade of a knife slowly seep it's way back inside him.

"You shouldn't have come."

* * *

**A/N: Umm...review I guess? **


	9. Freedom

**A/N: I'm sorry for the delay. I've been sick and in the middle of a writer's block. But yeah. Enjoy? Warning for crappy writing, child abuse, sexual abuse, and offensive language.**

* * *

Worry is a strange emotion. When one worries, they get angry sometimes, or scared. Or some times even depressed. It will keep a person awake if they try to go to sleep and it will cause gray hairs, and even hair loss.

But at the moment, she wouldn't admit how worried she was. No, Mrs. Mustang would tell you how angry she was as she waited for her husband.

She would tell you how she threw things around angrily, messing up the house. And she would tell you how she cleaned up the house with the most foul mood on her face.

Roy even brought up both his and Edward's plate upstairs so that they could leave his mother in peace.

But, even though she was overly angry with her husband, she was scared. Scared that something had happened to him, that he had gotten into a car accident. Or what if that Hohenheim got hold of him? She shook her head as she cleaned the dishes, trying to get her mind off of it all.

"Do you need help?" Came a voice from the doorway.

She turned around to see Ed standing there, two plates in his hands. She smiled sweetly at him and shook her head. "No. But I would like to talk with you, Ed. I hardly know you."

As soon as the words 'talk with you' passed her lips, she noticed a startling look on the young blonde's face. It scared her slightly but she kept smiling softly as if she didn't notice. Edward nodded and walked over, slowly putting the plates in the slightly warm water. Mrs. Mustang kissed his cheek in a thanks and began washing the boys' dishes.

"So, do you have a mother?" She asked.

Ed's face fell as he began to put his head down, not wanting to answer at all. He shrugged. "She ran off when I was little. I hadn't seen her since." He answered, a ping of pain strung inside of him.

Mrs. Mustang looked down at him with saddened eyes. "I'm sorry…"

Ed looked up at her, a small smile on his face. This confused Mrs. Mustang until he began to speak.

"It's okay. I have Al…and Roy. They already give me all the love I need."

* * *

The sky became darker and darker as Ed waited by the living room window, hoping and almost praying that his little brother was alright. That Mr. Mustang got out and maybe just had to stop by the store. But as each minute went by, he felt his heart drop even more. By the time the street lights came on, he had lost all hope in Al returning to him and felt his heart rise into his throat, tears threatening his eyes. He pushed them back when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Come on. We're going to get them ourselves."

A shiver slithered down Edward's spin at the thought of going back. He hugged himself, his eyes wide with fear. "W-what if he catches me…?"

Roy simply smiled and turned to boys head to face him. The look in Ed's eyes was complete and udder fear but it didn't seem to faze Roy.

"He won't touch you. Because if he does, I'll snap his neck." He said, placing his lips on the young blonde's.

As the kiss broke, Edward nodded. "Let's go."

* * *

Silence was one of the worst things in the world. If you made the tiniest peep, it could be the last sound you would ever make. And as Edward made his way into the hell hole he once called home, he felt the violence in the air. It was sickening. He held his breath, thinking that even his breathing would tip off that they were in the building. But as Roy made his way in front of him, the feeling slowly slipped away.

"Where would Al be?" The black haired teen whispered.

Ed shrugged, looking around with a bat in hand. "I don't know…"

Roy sighed mentally as he looked into the living room. The TV was on but just seemed to play static, the volume down low. Beer cans and bottles lay everywhere. He put his nose up at it and continued to look until he found a door. It was slightly opened, many locks hung off of it. As he got closer, the stench of blood was as thick as it showed on the walls and stairs that led down into the basement. When he turned to Ed, he saw his young lover shake with wide eyes.

"Please…I don't want to go down there…" He begged.

Roy nodded and handed Ed a whistle that was kept inside of his winter jacket in case he got lost or something horrible happened. He held him close for a minute and kissed the top of his head. "Blow the whistle if you see him. I'll come running up." And with that, he descended down the stairs.

As he made his way down, the smell got worse and worse. And when he made it to the bottom, he found out why.

There, on a blood stained mattress lay his father, several stab wounds in his torso.

"D-dad…?" Roy asked softly, making his way over to his lifeless father.

His eyes were open and fogged over, looking right over at the top of the stairs. A look of fear seemed to be plastered onto his face. Roy felt his heart jump into his throat and begin to stop his breathing. He took in a deep breath through his nose, fighting the tears that threatened to stream down. Slowly, he reached up and closed his father's eyes and clasped his hands together in a prayer of sorts. He sat there silently on his knees, his own eyes closed as well. But his thoughts were interrupted when he heard a small noise come from the bottom of the stairs.

"Roy…?" It asked.

He looked over to find Alphonse Elric sitting with his legs to his chest in the corner under the wooden stairs.

"Al…what happened to him?" He asked, standing up.

Al shook his head. "My father." He said, tears silently escaping his eyes.

And, almost as if on cue, Ed screamed at the top of the stairs, the door closing, and locking. A deep man's voice screamed at the small teen and soon both voices couldn't be heard anymore. Roy ran to the door and began to try his hardest to break it down. He swore under his breath after a few tries and finally gave up, sitting on the first step. Al silently came out of his small hiding place, setting himself up right next to the junior.

"There's no way we can help him right now. We have to just wait it out." The brunette told him.

Roy looked at him, looking frightened and confused. "Wait it out? Don't you ever try and stop it?"

Al shook his head, looking down at his fingernails as he played with them. "I tried once when I was real little. It's not good to get in the middle of his punishments."

"W-what does he do to him?" Roy asked. He wanted to know everything, but when Al turned to him with that look on his face, he didn't want to even bring it up anymore.

"Now? Well…he does whatever he wants to him. He kicks him, punches him, even takes a knife to him. He has cuts all over his back and arms. Just a few weeks ago, he started selling his body off, keeping him down here so he couldn't run away."

Roy's stomach churned at the sound of this. He turned to the mattress that contained his father and shuttered at the realization that not all that blood belonged to Mr. Mustang. Taking a deep breath, he nodded. "I-I see…" He stuttered, not knowing what else to say.

Alphonse nodded. "He locked the door. He'll unlock it to put Brother in and once he sees you…who knows what will happen…"

Once again, the older teen nodded. He stood up and looked down at the brunette. "No. This is ending. Right here, right now."

The same look of fear and horror that Ed wore earlier that night was plastered on the young boy's face as he stared at him. "What are you going to do?"

Roy smirked, pulling a cell phone out of his pocket. "I'm calling the police. Tell them I've been kidnapped and they'll come running."

* * *

His cheek slammed hard against the carpeted floor, adding another bruise to his body. The once blonde hair was lightly coated a deep crimson and some of it was scattered all over the floor, and even in his father's fist. He looked up at a wall which held the same crimson that tied in with his hair, all from being thrown across the room.

"How DARE you run away!" He screamed, picking the boy up yet again, putting him over his head. Which wasn't hard to do. The teen was only ninety pounds, and maybe, even less.

"I lost clients and money because of you!" He threw his son yet again.

Edward hit the wall hard, coming down on top of a dresser only to fall, once again, onto the floor. His vision had gotten blurry and he couldn't make out any words that Hohenheim was screaming at him. But when his father froze, he looked up from the floor to see more people run in. They were dressed in black, pointing things he couldn't make out at the older man. They screamed at him.

The last thing he saw before everything went dark was a man in a black uniform, smiling, picking him up and caring him down the stairs.

* * *

_BEEP…_

_BEEP…_

_BEEP…_

Roy Mustang hated himself. He had always tried to be strong, not just for him, but for others who couldn't be. And as he looked down at Edward, he never felt so much hatred. Not just for himself for allowing this to happen for so long, but hatred toward Hohenheim. The doctors told him that his father died long after being stabbed from loss of blood. And if the police had been there a minute later, his blonde lover would be in the same position as Mr. Mustang. Slowly, he reached his hand out to the smaller teen laying in the pure white bed. He held his small, thin hand, feeling his stomach twist. Ed was freezing cold. If the monitor hadn't been hooked up, he would have sworn he was a corpse. His chest didn't even seem to move. Then again, it was hard to really see him. The hospital gown and sheets seemed to suck him in like quick sand.

"Edward…" He said softly. "I'm so sorry…I'm sorry that I couldn't protect you…"

The young blonde didn't move, not even opening his eyes.

When Alphonse first saw how he looked, he cried. He sobbed. He even screamed and cursed at his father as he was taken away to the police department. After a while of being with his brother, though, he left. When Roy asked where he was going, Al simply said he was going to go get some air, tell his teachers what happened, and set up an appointment with a physiatrist for Edward.

"Ed…please. Open your eyes. Say something to me." Roy begged, watching his eyes.

He waited for what seemed like days, just sitting there. But Ed did not open his eyes. He would turn every once and a while, and maybe even start crying. And every time something like this happened, Roy was right there, petting his head, trying to calm him down.

A week would pass by before he finally would open his eyes.

And when they did, he looked over at Roy who was sitting right next to him, holding his hand. A doctor was taking to the black haired teen, reading things off a clipboard. He didn't make out the words. But after a few seconds, everything became clear, his vision and his hearing.

"All of those beatings took a real toll on his body. And, since it's so frail, I'm surprised he hasn't broken anything. But what really surprises me is that he had gone on for this long without his body crashing. Well, it did, but for that many years, according to the test results, he should be long dead by now."

Ed blinked and slowly began to sit up. "Where's Al…?" He asked softly.

At this little peep, Roy jumped, laying him back down. "He's at a teacher's house. Your father is in jail. In fact, tomorrow, we have to go to court." He informed him.

Outside, Roy kept a calm face. But inside, he was dying of happiness.

Ed nodded and laid back down, looking around. "Where am I?" He asked, looking up at Roy who smiled softly as the doctor left.

"The hospital. You've been here for a week. How do you feel?"

The young blonde sat there and thought for a moment. He wasn't sore and actually felt pretty good. He looked up at his lover with a smile. "I feel better." He said.

Roy smiled at the reply and leaned down, kissing him softly. The taste of cinnamon, apples, and pepper flooded Ed's mouth as he held their lips together. The older teen began to go on his urge and climbed up onto the bed, making the kiss even deeper, biting Ed's lip for entrance. The blonde's lip quivered and soon opened, letting Roy explore his mouth. The kiss was soft and gentle, it being parted every once and a while for them to breathe. After about a second or two of the lovers staring at each other, their lips would reconnect, each time, going deeper. After a while, the two stopped and simply relaxed on the bed, holding each other close.

"So…tomorrow, we go to court." Ed said, thinking it all over.

Roy nodded. "You will have to tell them everything. And don't worry. I'll be there, Al will be there, the police will be there. He won't be able to touch you."

* * *

Mrs. Mustang sat in the seats among the jury, silently watching as her son and his lover walked in and up to their desk, sitting down. They both wore a work shirt and black formal pants. Edward's hair was back in it's normal golden braid, his face never seamed clearer. Her blood began to boil when she watched Hohenheim walk in and sit not to far from them. When the judge called the court into order, she directed her attention toward him.

After a few minutes of the lawyers arguing and the judge calling order to his court, Edward went up to the stand to report more evidence of abuse.

"Now, Edward. Is it true your father sold out your body to older men to have their way with you?"

Ed looked over at his father but nodded, staring back at the lawyer. "Yes." He said, not taking his eyes off the formally dressed man.

The lawyer nodded and walked back and forth, not taking his eyes off Ed for even a minute. "We've collected pictures from the hospital of your wounds. There are burn scars all over your body. What happened there?"

The young blonde bit his lip, remembering what had happened long ago. "When I was small, for punishment, my father would stick me in the oven and turn it on. He would leave me in there for a few minutes then bring me to my room." He said, fighting the tears that burned his eyes.

Mrs. Mustang shook her head, looking in her purse. Not for her lipstick, but for the fact that she didn't want to hear.

"Now tell us what else your father did to you." The lawyer said.

Ed looked down, not wanting to look up. He felt the eyes of every person in the room staring at him. It was like a hand gripping his heart and lungs tighter and tighter.

"W-well…he did that until I was to big to fit in. Sometimes, he would come home drunk and take a knife and charge at me with it. After a while, I stopped running away from him when he did it because it only made it worse." He said and turned away. He felt ashamed, letting out the family secret.

The lawyer walked over and patted his head. "It's okay. You can tell us. We're here to get rid of him, remember? Just tell us everything."

Ed silently cried as he talked into the microphone once again. "Umm…h-he locked me in the basement. A-and I had to make money for my family…so, clients would come down and I would…" He looked up slowly, his eyes on Roy.

Roy stared at him for a moment then mouthed out that it was alright. That he was there. Ed nodded and looked at the lawyer. "And I would let them touch me and play with me…and I would try not to pay attention…but sometimes it just hurt so bad." He looked down at his fingers as he played with the nails. He didn't want to hear himself say anything, he wanted his voice to disappear. But he kept talking, pretending that he was the only one in the room and that he was talking to himself.

"I remember the feeling of them entering me and how I would fight them off. But they wouldn't budge. Once, there were two clients at the same time and they both did it to me. I remember bleeding a lot. I remember giving up after a while and just letting them do whatever."

Several people left the room, their hands on their stomachs as Edward continued on. Roy's teeth began to grit and he looked upon the man whom his lover called father. He just sat there and listened, not an emotion on his face.

"Fuck you…" He mumbled as he stared at Hohenheim.

Soon, Ed's turn was over and his father took the stand, still as dead panned as ever. When he sat down and looked out over the court, every single person was glaring at him, some even flipping him off.

"Van Hohenheim, is it true that you did indeed lock your son in the basement, abuse him sexually, beat him, throw him in a working oven, and sold his body in a sexual manner?" The lawyer asked, trying his hardest to stay calm.

Hohenheim nodded, clearing his throat. "Yes. Yes, it is."

"You fucking bastard!" Mrs. Mustang screamed as she stood up. "You sick fucking bastard!"

All at once, she threw off her high heels and ran up to the man, her eyes burning with rage. The police grabbed her just in time, pulling her back into her seat as she screamed.

"How dare you touch him! Do you have any idea what you've done!?"

Slowly, Hohenheim nodded, looking down. "Yes. I do."

When the police finally calmed Mrs. Mustang down, the lawyer started up again. "And is it true, Mr. Hohenheim, that you killed a David Mustang and your wife, Trisha Elric? And stuffed her body in the walls of your own home?"

Edward's eyes went wide and he glanced at his brother who was equally shocked. Their mother was dead? No. No, she wasn't. Their father told them she ran off. That she was living with her parents now. She couldn't be dead.

But slowly, Hohenheim nodded. "Yes. I killed them."

A fire from inside Ed burned hotter and brighter as he stood up, glaring at his father. "Fuck you! You killer! You mother fucking murderer!"

Hohenheim simply turned his head as the teen screamed and cried his heart out, his brother doing the same. When they finally calmed down, the jury gave the judge their final verdict. The judge nodded, looking it over.

"For many accounts of rape, human trafficking, child abuse, and murder, the jury and I sentence Van Hohenheim to death by lethal injection. Edward and Alphonse Elric, you two will be living at the Mustang residence until the age of eighteen. Court dismissed."

All at once, Edward felt every emotion. Tears poured down his face as he smiled slightly. He heard many, many words that day. But the two words he'd been waiting to hear his whole life flew through his ears like a bluebird.

"You're free."

* * *

The metal table was about as cold as the snow outside, freezing his back as he laid upon it.

Hohenheim looked over at the glass that separated him from his children who sat, staring. As he looked them over, the feeling of regret flowed over him.

The head of police took a microphone off a table and brought it up to Hohenheim's lips. "Any last words?" He asked.

Van nodded and took in a shaky breath. "Edward…Alphonse…I'm sorry…" He said, tears slowly falling down his cheeks as he stared at the two boys.

They didn't move or say a thing. They simply stared, almost waiting for his demise.

And as they stared, Hohenheim began to sob, realizing now that things could have been a lot different.

Van Hohenheim was always a troubled child. He always got into fights, was always down at the police station, and was never in school. That is, until he met Trisha. When he met her, he changed his whole life around for the better. When they first had Edward, he promised to protect him till the day he died. He imagined his life with the child, teaching him how to ride a bike, throwing big birthday parties for him, taking his picture while he was on his way to prom.

But, one night, after coming home from the bar, he made the biggest mistake.

While she was helping him to his bed, Hohenheim slapped Trisha.

And the world seemed to go down hill from there.

He tried to replace every horrible memory with what could have been as his eyes closed. He imagined teaching Edward how to walk, ride a bike, helping him lose a tooth, teaching him how to read…

Being with him when he had his first broken heart…

Tears slowly went down his face as the last injection flowed through his system. And slowly, the memories stopped, his mind slipping into nothingness. The head of police put his fingers on the man's wrist and nodded to the doctor who pulled a sheet over Hohenheim.

Roy rubbed Edward's shoulder as the blonde tried his best to hold back the tears. "It's okay, Ed. You're free."

Ed nodded, watching as they wheeled his father away. "I know…I just wish things could have been different…"

* * *

**A/N: Umm...review? Sorry, the last part is really crappy. I'm half awake.**


	10. Story

**A/N: Welp, the last chapter. I feel horrible putting this up. I felt like my child was dying as I wrote this. Well, anyway, enjoy.**

* * *

Every new year, people do one of two things.

They reflect on their past. Think about what could have been, would have been, and should have been.

Or, they think about their future. What they're going to do this year, what they should do, and what they could do.

But, with every new year, there's new challenges, new things to be done. New people to meet. And today was all about meeting new people. To be more specific, children.

All of them were outside, playing happily in the snow. Some on the swings, others playing tag. And as Edward looked at them all, he hoped he could be a good father to one of them.

His husband, Roy, looked at him and smiled as they stood watching from a window. "You alright?" He asked.

Ed nodded. "Just thinking." He replied.

Roy nodded and held his lover's hand, looking back over at the children. "Edward, you're going to be an amazing father."

"How do you know? I mean, what if I mess up? What if I scar the kid?" The 25 year old blonde said, tugging at his hair.

The black haired 26 year old chuckled and pulled Ed's hand down. "You won't. I promise you won't."

After a while of looking through files and going through many interviews, the two lovers began to decide. That is, until Ed saw one little girl sitting all by herself. She also had blonde hair, but it wasn't as golden as his own. Her blue eyes seemed sad but also playful as she watched the other children play. The puff ball on her pink hat looked like it would come off at any second as the wind blew.

"Hey, Roy. Did we interview her?" He asked, pointing to the little girl.

The taller man shook his head as he looked her over as well. "No, I don't think we did."

Ed smiled. "Then lets go."

When they approached the little girl, she simply stared up at them with wide, curious eyes. She looked almost scared but didn't run away.

"Hi there. I'm Edward and this is my husband, Roy."

"Husband?" She asked, tilting her head.

Ed nodded. "Yeah. Does that freak you out?"

The girl shook her head and smiled. "No. Why should it?"

Edward smiled. "What's your name?"

"My name's Winry."

As they talked, hours seemed to go by like seconds and before they knew it, a caretaker of the orphanage began rounding up the children. Walking over, the caretaker saw the three talking away like there wasn't going to be a new year. She smiled at the sight and left to go inside. And as she picked up the adoption papers, her heart jumped into her throat. She was always like this when a child was adopted. The other caretakers would tell her not to get to attached, that the children would be here one day and gone the next. But she never listened. She knew these children needed attention and love, and right now, Edward and Roy Elric-Mustang were giving a child just that.

When she walked back out, the three were still talking. Winry started laughing at a joke that the caretaker couldn't hear but all the laughing stopped when she walked over, papers in hand.

"It's time to go in, isn't it?" The young girl asked, her expression fading from her face.

The caretaker shook her head. "Winry, do you like these people?"

The 5 year old blonde nodded, clinging to the older men's pants. The caretaker smiled and handed the papers to the lovers, a pen on top. "And do you two like her as well?"

Ed and Roy nodded, smiling down at the papers in their hands. The tears threatened the caretakers eyes but she let them pass. "I'm glad…if you could, would you kindly sign these papers? And once you do, Winry, you'll be part of a family."

Winry's ocean blue eyes sparkled even more then her smile as she looked up at the caretaker. The two adopters signed the papers faster then the caretaker had seen before and handed them in at record time. The woman smiled, nodded, and gave Winry one last hug.

"If there is anything you need, just call." She whispered to the young girl who nodded.

As they drove away, Winry took a last look at the orphanage and smiled, folding her hands together as she prayed that the children would find homes as well. When she was done, she lifted her head and looked out the window, the car slowly coming to a stop at a red light. A person crossing the street caught her eye. He was a teenager, long black hair in a low ponytail. The clothes he wore were very oriental and shined a bright yellow as he walked across the street. She stared and began to wonder everything about him.

"Hey dad," She said to Roy. "you know a lot of stories. What's his?" She asked, pointing to the teen.

Ed smiled and turned to Roy who simply shrugged, looking at the boy as well. "I don't know, hun."

_"Everyone has a story. And once you listen to that story, you become a chapter in another person's life." - ADAM_

* * *

**A/N: So yeah. Don't worry, I'll be writing more EdXRoy. Thank you all for your time and support. Much love! - ADAM**


	11. Sequel

**A/N: Hello world!**

**Now, many people seem to love this story. Like, LOVE this story. **

**I think this one has the most views and comments out of all my fanfics.**

**So, I've decided to make a sort of sequel for this. **

**It's going to be a set of short stories. How Ed and Al's life was off the chapters. **

**In chapter 1, Ed was about 3 and Al was 2. And suddenly, it jumps right into their teens. And then it jumps right into their adulthood. The short stories are going to show how the abuse was, the marriage between Ed and Roy, and, of course, the end of their lives. **

**The story will start up on Thursday. It will be called 'Everyone has a short story'. **

**Anyway, yeah! Look out for this sequel! Thank you for your time and love you all! - ADAM**


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